The present invention relates to seal structures for doors of automobiles in which door openings for side doors have roof openings for roof doors successively provided on upper sides thereof. Side ends of the roof doors open and close in upward and downward directions.
Brides' taxis or bridal taxis for preventing Japanese brides' headdress from bumping against ceilings have been well known, in which the door openings for side doors for rear side seats have the roof openings for roof doors successively provided on upper sides thereof via hinge mechanisms provided on center sides of automobiles. The side ends of the roof doors (roof hatch) open and close in upward and downward directions for enlarging openings for getting on and getting out.
Also, some automobiles have enlarged openings for getting on and getting out on front side seats as well as rear side seats for facilitating getting on and getting out (see, for example, the Japanese unexamined Patent Publication Nos. S62-91316 and S63-176721).
The brides' taxis (bridal taxis) or the automobiles as disclosed in S62-91316 have the side doors with sashes, in which the side doors are opened first and the roof doors are opened second manually or automatically. In general, the roof doors can not be opened while the side doors are closed.
It is because opening and closing mechanisms between the side doors and the roof doors are subject to restrictions concerning orders of opening and closing without fail in consideration of construction of seal parts formed on the weather strips provided on peripheral edges of side doors.
In addition, there have not been proposed the seal structures for doors of automobiles capable of prior closing or posterior closing of either of the doors, the roof doors for example, while sufficiently securing sealing property between the side doors and the roof doors.
As to sedan cars shown in FIG. 15, for example, of which side door 1 with a door sash 2 opens and closes in right and left directions (widthwise direction of the automobile), shape in cross section of a seal part of a weather strip 10 mounted on the door sash 2, that is the shape in cross section of a hollow seal member 12 and a seal lip 13 of the weather strip 10 which makes elastic contact with a body panel 3 when the side door 1 is closed, has been determined in consideration of advancing locus 110 of the side door 1. In case of the automobiles of which roof doors open, advancing locus 120 (see FIG. 17) of the roof doors also have to be considered.
More specifically, as shown in FIG. 16, a position and a shape in cross section of the hollow seal member 12 integrally molded with an inner-cabin side of the installation base member 11 of the weather strip 10 is determined in a manner to make elastic contact with a convex 3a formed on an inner-cabin side surface of the body panel 3 when the side door 1 is closed. Also, a position and a shape in cross section of a seal lip 13 having a substantially tongue shape in cross-section, which is integrally molded with an outer-cabin side of the installation base member 11 is determined in a manner that a back side surface (surface on the body panel 3 side) of the seal lip 13 makes elastic contact with the outer-cabin side surface of the body panel 3 and a top end of the seal lip 13 curves toward the outer-cabin side.
Suppose that the body panel 3 shown in FIG. 15 opens and closes in the upward and downward directions like the roof door and makes elastic contact with the weather strip 10 mounted on the side door 1 as closed from an upper side, the convex 3a formed on the inner-cabin side surface of the body panel 3 holds the hollow seal member 12 down from the upper side as shown in FIG. 17. The resultant cross-sectional shape of the hollow seal member 12 as bent is different from the cross-sectional shape of the hollow seal member 12 as bent when the side door 1 makes elastic contact with the body panel 3 as shown in FIG. 16, thereby remaining a problem that sealing property is not stabilized.
Also, there has remained another problem that the top end of the seal lip 13 is dragged toward the inner-cabin side and turned over depending on a direction in which the top end of the seal lip 13 extends, a direction in which an outer-cabin side surface of the body panel 3 with which the seal lip 13 makes elastic contact extends and entering direction of the body panel 3 from the upper side in case of supposing that the body panel 3 opens and closes like the roof door. As a result, sealing function is degraded.
Accordingly, sufficient sealing property has not been secured by simply applying the weather strip 10 mounted on the side door 1 between the side door 1 which opens and closes in the right and left directions (widthwise direction) and the roof door which opens and closes in the upward and downward directions.
Securing the sufficient sealing property is more difficult because of unevenness in closure positions of the side door 1 and the roof door as closed.
Automobiles according to Japanese unexamined Patent Publication No. S63-176721 include a seal structure in which side glasses on the side doors of sash-less structure directly make elastic contact with weather strips set up on side ends of roof doors (roof hatches). Such a structure has remained a problem that securing rigidity of the door around heads of crews is difficult.
In addition, throwing-down amount on the weather strip side of the side glasses which make elastic contact with the weather strips is generally great. Therefore, when the roof doors (roof hatches) are closed after the side doors are closed with the side glasses risen (closed), a risk increases that the weather strips interfere with the side glasses and seal parts formed on the weather strips are dragged.
When the seal parts are dragged, an expected sealing function is not sufficiently performed. Accordingly, the roof door (roof hatches) sides have to be closed first.
As mentioned above, there have not been proposed the seal structures for doors of automobiles capable of prior closing or posterior closing of either of the doors, the roof doors for example, while sufficiently securing sealing property between the side doors and the roof doors (roof hatches). It is to be noted that the Japanese unexamined Patent Publication No. S62-91316 does not disclose a seal structure between the side doors and the roof doors. Also, the Japanese unexamined Patent Publication No. S63-176721 relates to a drainage structure for T-bar roof vehicles or the like, of which both side parts on the automobile body roofs are removable roof hatches, and does not disclose the prior closing or posterior closing of either of the doors.
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide the seal structures for doors of automobiles in which the weather strips provided between the side doors which open and close in the right and left directions (widthwise direction of the automobile) and the roof doors which open and close in the upward and downward direction stabilize sealing property between the doors while simply securing rigidity of the doors.